Gabrielle d'Estrees et une de ses soeurs
Encyclopedia
The painting Gabrielle d'Estrées et une de ses soeurs (ɡabʁiɛl dɛstʁe e yn də sɛ sœʁ) by an unknown artist (c.1594), is of Gabrielle d'Estrées
, mistress of King Henry IV of France
, sitting up nude in a bath, holding (assumedly) Henry's coronation ring, whilst her sister sits nude beside her and pinches her right nipple. Henry gave Gabrielle the ring as a token of his love shortly before she died.
The painting is a symbolic announcement anticipating the birth of Gabrielle's first child with Henry IV, César de Bourbon
. Her maternity is expressed in three ways: her sister pinches the source of the new mother's milk, the servant in the background knits in preparation for the child, and the fire in the fireplace signifies the mother's furnace. The love between Gabrielle and Henry IV is expressed by the painting of a love scene on the back wall and by the coronation ring.
This painting is interesting in that everything is peculiarly left-handedly-biased. Gabrielle's sister is pinching her right nipple with her left hand, d'Estrées is holding what is said to be King Henry IV of France’s coronation ring with her left hand, and the seamstress in the background is sewing with her left hand. Additionally, the painting hanging in the background is of the lower body of a naked person, but contrary to rumor, he is not holding his penis with his left hand. A piece of red fabric is draped over his genitals.
The painting now hangs at the Louvre in Paris.A sprightly British drama Two Nudes Bathing
speculates upon the origins of the anonymous painting.
Gabrielle d'Estrées
Gabrielle d'Estrées, Duchess of Beaufort and Verneuil, Marchioness of Monceaux was a French mistress of King Henry IV of France, born at either the Château de la Bourdaisière in Montlouis-sur-Loire, in Touraine, or at the château de Cœuvres, in Picardy....
, mistress of King Henry IV of France
Henry IV of France
Henry IV , Henri-Quatre, was King of France from 1589 to 1610 and King of Navarre from 1572 to 1610. He was the first monarch of the Bourbon branch of the Capetian dynasty in France....
, sitting up nude in a bath, holding (assumedly) Henry's coronation ring, whilst her sister sits nude beside her and pinches her right nipple. Henry gave Gabrielle the ring as a token of his love shortly before she died.
The painting is a symbolic announcement anticipating the birth of Gabrielle's first child with Henry IV, César de Bourbon
César de Bourbon, duc de Vendôme
César de Bourbon, Légitimé de France , Duke of Vendôme, was the son of Henry IV of France and his mistress Gabrielle d'Estrées. Sometimes simply known as César de Vendôme. Through his daughter, Élisabeth de Bourbon, César was a great-great-great-grandfather of Louis XV of France, merging thereafter...
. Her maternity is expressed in three ways: her sister pinches the source of the new mother's milk, the servant in the background knits in preparation for the child, and the fire in the fireplace signifies the mother's furnace. The love between Gabrielle and Henry IV is expressed by the painting of a love scene on the back wall and by the coronation ring.
This painting is interesting in that everything is peculiarly left-handedly-biased. Gabrielle's sister is pinching her right nipple with her left hand, d'Estrées is holding what is said to be King Henry IV of France’s coronation ring with her left hand, and the seamstress in the background is sewing with her left hand. Additionally, the painting hanging in the background is of the lower body of a naked person, but contrary to rumor, he is not holding his penis with his left hand. A piece of red fabric is draped over his genitals.
The painting now hangs at the Louvre in Paris.A sprightly British drama Two Nudes Bathing
Two Nudes Bathing
Two Nudes Bathing is a 1995 British short film directed by John Boorman. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1995 Cannes Film Festival.-Cast:* John Hurt – Marquis de Prey* Charley Boorman – The Painter* Angeline Ball – Simone...
speculates upon the origins of the anonymous painting.